Morgan crosses finish line 17th in nation

Torrey Pines senior runner Megan Morgan finished in 17th place at the Foot Locker Cross Country Championships National Finals at Morley Field on Dec. 12. It was Morgan's second time competing in nationals, and she improved on last year's 24th place finish in the 5K race with a time of 18:02.

Morgan entered the race as the number two runner in the west behind Rancho Bernardo's Molly Grabil, who finished in 12th place.

"I was trying to run my own race today and not get caught up with going too fast or too slow," said Megan, who was supported by all of her Torrey Pines teammates on the sidelines in body paint.

Megan said she was challenged by the tough hill up Upas Street on the course. While she is familiar with the difficult hill, at Foot Locker they had to run up it twice, where in CIF finals and other meets they only go up once.

Megan and her competitors were treated to just a light drizzle of rain during their race — soon after she crossed the finish line it began to pour, she said.

The race marked the last of Megan's high school cross-country career; four years that ended with the first ever Torrey Pines girls state championship win.

"I will definitely miss my teammates, they're a great team of really special girls," Megan said. "It was bittersweet to win state before I left."

Megan will still run for Torrey Pines once the spring track and field season begins and come fall she will run for the University of Washington.

"I'm really, really excited," Megan said of the opportunity to run for the Huskies.